Everybody who enjoyed “The Lord Of The Rings” epic
trilogy was looking forward to the moment when another John Ronald Reuel
Tolkien book, “The Hobbit,” would be brought to the screen.

It took two years and over $500 million to turn this fantasy tale,
prequel to “The Lord of the Rings,” into another impressive franchise,
the first episode of which premiered in Ukraine on Dec. 19.

New
Line Cinema studio decided to divide “The Hobbit” into three movies, to
go through every detail of the book and make as much money as possible.
Part one is called “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.”

Action
starts in the well-known hobbit homeland, the Shire, with its cozy
holes, green grass and peaceful atmosphere. The measured, bucolic life
of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins (played by Martin Freeman, best known as Dr.
Watson from the BBC's Sherlock series) came to a sudden end when the
mysterious magician Gandalf came to his house.

Bilbo then
finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves, led by legendary
warrior and dwarve king, Thorin Oakenshield. Thorin and his fellowship
are off on an epic journey to find their kin's lost treasure and revive
their kingdom.

Passing the stone giants was one of the challenges Bilbo and dwarves had

During the three-hour-long movie they meet trolls, orcs, elves, stone giants and wargs, a kind of deadly wolf.

As
both “The Lord Of The Rings” and “The Hobbit” were directed by Peter
Jackson, they share style and soundtrack. Most importantly, though, the
characters involved in both stories are played by the same cast.

Purists
will point to discrepancies between book and movie. Notably, some
scenes or qualities were changed to be more impressive. For example,
dwarves made to look younger and more stylish than Tolkien's grim
version. But each one still has his own specific features and hairstyle –
they are loud, naughty but brave and faithful.

It's better to be always beware of trolls - stupid, but strong and aggressive creatures.

An impressive
budget of $180 million gave room for use of even the most advanced
technologies. This is the first film shot at 48 frames per second
instead of the normal 24 frames. And of course, its in 3D.

Mass
battles, beautiful scenery, an amazing fortress, dynamic scenes of
chasing and flying, curious creatures - it all looks perfect in 3D and
IMAX theaters. Some scenes are so powerful, frightening or exciting as
to bring out the inner kid in you. And it is interesting even for those
who know nothing about Tolkien's universe.

When “The Hobbit”
is over, it’s hard to believe that three hours had passed so fast and
you won’t see any more of the Tolkien-Jackson world until Dec. 13, 2013.
That’s when the next part, “The Desolation of Smaug,” comes to the
theaters. The brave company’s adventures will come to the end on July
18, 2014, when “The Hobbit: There and Back Again,” brings an end to the
cult series.

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